Omar Minaya

The Mets had no shortage of disappointing losses during Willie Randolph’s tenure, but the team chose to fire him, along with pitching coach Rick Peterson and first base coach Tom Nieto, around 90 minutes after Monday night’s 9-6 victory over the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

Randolph will be replaced by former White Sox manager Jerry Manuel; Dan Warthen, who had been the Mets’ pitching coach at AAA New Orleans, will assume Rick Peterson’s duties. AAA Manager Ken Oberkfell and AAA coach Luis Aguayo will also join the staff.

Randolph’s fate was the subject of speculation since the end of the 2007 season, one in which the Mets lost a seven-game lead in the National League East with 17 games left to play, one of the biggest collapses in baseball history.  read more »

For much of the second half, Orlando Hernandez was the Mets’ best pitcher. He solidified the starting rotation behind Tom Glavine as John Maine struggled and Pedro Martinez labored toward a return.

But as the season enters its final days with the Mets allowing an ungodly number of runs, the possible return of El Duque could be a crucial fix for a Mets team that is backing into the postseason. Without him, either as a reliever or pushing John Maine to the bullpen, the middle innings appear to be one pitcher short.  read more »